Neil Critchley
Neil Critchley (born 18 October 1978) is an English former footballer and manager who played in the Football League First Division for Crewe Alexandra. His only appearance for Crewe came in a 3–0 defeat away at Fulham during the 1999–2000 season. He is currently the head coach of Blackpool, having left his post as Liverpool's under-23s manager on 2 March 2020.[2]
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Neil Critchley[1] | ||
Date of birth | 18 October 1978 | ||
Place of birth | Crewe, England | ||
Playing position(s) | Midfielder | ||
Club information | |||
Current team | Blackpool (head coach) | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1999–2000 | Crewe Alexandra | 1 | (0) |
2000–2001 | Leigh RMI | 3 | (0) |
Teams managed | |||
2013–2017 | Liverpool U18 | ||
2017–2020 | Liverpool U23 | ||
2019–2020 | Liverpool (stand-in) | ||
2020– | Blackpool | ||
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only |
He is one of sixteen coaches worldwide to have obtained UEFA's elite badge.[3]
Managerial career
Liverpool
Due to fixture congestion of Liverpool's first team during the 2019–20 season, Critchley served as the stand-in manager for Liverpool in their EFL Cup away match against Aston Villa on 17 December 2019.[4] The congestion was caused by Liverpool's participation in the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup in Qatar, which overlapped with the EFL Cup quarter-finals.[5][6][7] Liverpool, fielding a team made up exclusively of under-23s, were beaten 5–0.[8][9] Critchley again served as Liverpool's stand-in manager for the FA Cup fourth round replay against Shrewsbury Town on 4 February 2020, as the first team were on a mid-season break.[10] The youthful Liverpool team won 1–0 via an own goal.[11] Critchley ranks 13th in Liverpool's history for highest win percentage of matches with 50%.
Blackpool
On 2 March 2020, Critchley was appointed as head coach of Blackpool on a three and a half year contract.[12] After a curtailed regular season due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom, Blackpool finished in 13th position after standings were amended to reflect a points-per-game ratio.[13]
Managerial statistics
- As of match played 10 March 2020
Team | Nat | From | To | Record | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
G | W | D | L | Win % | |||||||
Liverpool (stand-in) | 17 December 2019 | 4 February 2020 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 50.00 | ||||
Blackpool | 2 March 2020 | Present | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0.00 | ||||
Total | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 25.00 |
References
- "Neil Critchley". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
- "Neil Critchley – U18s manager". LiverpoolFC.com. Liverpool Football Club. Retrieved 14 November 2013.
- "Liverpool lose Neil Critchley as U23s boss joins League One club" - Liverpool Echo, 2 March 2020
- "Q&A: Neil Critchley's pre-Carabao Cup quarter-final press conference". Liverpool. 16 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- "Klopp explains Club World Cup and Carabao Cup squad selections". Liverpool. 6 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- "Aston Villa v Liverpool: Carabao Cup Quarter-Final tie confirmed". EFL.com. English Football League. 5 November 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- "LFC statement on Carabao Cup tie with Aston Villa". Liverpool. 5 November 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- "'A great opportunity' – Neil Critchley on Carabao Cup quarter-final". Liverpool. 12 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- "Aston Villa 5–0 Liverpool: Dean Smith's side overwhelm young Liverpool side". BBC Sport. 18 December 2019. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
- "Jurgen Klopp: Liverpool's first team will miss FA Cup replay v Shrewsbury". BBC Sport. 26 January 2020. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
- Johnston, Neil (4 February 2020). "Liverpool 1–0 Shrewsbury: Own goal by Ro-Shaun Williams sends young Reds through". BBC Sport. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
- "Neil Critchley Appointed New Head Coach" - Blackpool F.C., 2 March 2020
- "League One & League Two clubs vote to end seasons early" - BBC Sport, 9 May, 2020